For you, anytime
by Sevi007
Summary: Society demands answers as All Might's true form is revealed, and Toshinori has no choice but to answer to them. Tired and hurting, he goes at his absolute limits and beyond, until his students and friends decide that he can't go on like this - he needs a break. And the best breaks are spent with those who love you. (Spoiler warning! Also - Sequel to Smile again.)


The flashlights were coming from all sides, blinding him, even though he was looking down. Voices almost overrode each other, each one trying to drown out the others, to be heard. Questions were hailing down, and not all of them had the sole purpose of getting knowledge. Some of them were just meant to shame and hurt him.

" _All Might, could you answer the question, please?"_

" _All Might, for how long have you lied to society?"_

" _Now that you can't fight anymore, who will protect society?"_

" _How do you feel now that your secret has been revealed? Are you ashamed, or do you feel guilty for lying?"_

Toshinori's head was throbbing painfully and he was sweating in the heat of the headlights. There were dozens, no, hundreds of gazes directed his way, not to mention the cameras who were sending this live.

How many times had he given interviews like that since the incident? Two weeks… fifteen, sixteen? More? Which one was this, the twentieth? He couldn't tell anymore.

Even more than in the last three weeks that had followed his fight against All for One, Toshinori wished that he could be All Might once more. The Number One never had had any trouble with standing in the centre of attention. Had laughed accusation and hurtful questions off like they were nothing.

Toshinori, however, could not.

He was tired. So terribly tired. His body was not fully healed yet, and even though his emotional state was more stable thanks to his friends and his students, he was still not as strong as he once had been. (Would never be that strong again, he reminded himself bitterly.)

For two weeks straight, he had given interview after interview. Where his day had been filled with teaching, his evenings had been filled with questions, statements, wrong information and reading the headlines of the interview the day before – only to grit his teeth in frustration when the reporters had yet again turned his own words against him.

Toshinori wished desperately that he could just turn around and go home. All Might was not here anymore, so why did he have to answer the questions? There was only Toshinori, who could never do what All Might had done with ease – he could not give society what they so desperately wanted to hear.

 _Don't worry, for I am here._

He couldn't say those words anymore, because they would seem like a joke coming from the mouth of a man who looked more like death himself.

It was weird, really. The interviews were so similar, the questions almost the same – he should get used to them over time. He should not let them get to him.

But they did. Each interview left him feeling a bit more tired, a bit hollower. The questions seemed to burn holes into him which got only deeper over time, cracks forming between them, stretching, growing.

He felt like he would shatter soon.

Toshinori kept going nonetheless, pushing himself forwards relentlessly. He owed the society answers. He couldn't protect them anymore, but he could reassure them, he told himself. He could still _do_ something for the people he wanted to protect.

(He tried to ignore the little voice in the back of his head, telling him that he couldn't _reassure anyone_ in the state he was in. He wasn't All Might anymore, just Toshinori. Toshinori couldn't safe _anyone._ )

Grip around the speaker's desk tightening, Toshinori closed his eyes, tuning the chatter and noises of dozens of reporters out for a moment. Instead he reached for memories that kept him going through tough times – his friends, his students, and his successor. He tried to imagine what they were doing right now. The children would be at the dorms, either studying or getting up to mischievousness yet again. His colleagues would be watching over them. The rest of his friends would either be working or enjoy their free evening.

Right now, they were safe and sound.

 _Do it for them,_ he told himself, collecting what little bit of strength he had left.

Toshinori straightened himself and waited for the next question.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ H ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Evening found Izuku in front of the television yet again. Sitting alone in the living room while the other inhabitants of the dorms where scattered all throughout the house, Izuku switched threw the channels until he found the one he was looking for.

The Live-Interview with All Might.

Izuku settled down, knees drawn up so that he could hug them closer to his chest. Giving him something to hold on to.

This was the nineteenth interview, Izuku knew. Nineteen interviews in two weeks, most of them during the evenings, some of them during the day.

It was only natural, Izuku thought, that he would watch each of them. This was his teacher, after all, and he was worried for him.

And he was not the only one.

"Ah! It started already?!" Kirishima exclaimed as soon as he walked out of the kitchen and saw the TV. "Did we miss much?!"

"No, it started just now," Izuku answered absentmindedly, gaze not leaving the screen.

"Great. Wait, let me just…"

Izuku lifted his hands, laid them over his ears and signalled the other boy that it was okay.

"GUYS!" Kirishima hollered over his shoulder, bellowing at the top of his lunges to make sure that everyone in the house could hear him. "All Might-sensei is on TV!"

"STOP SHOUTING!" Bakugou bellowed back from somewhere, not heeding his own warning at all.

Izuku just covered his ears and waited until the shouting match was over, gaze still fixed on the screen.

He quickly noted the way All Might's shoulders were slumped down, weighed down under an invisible weight. The way the blue of his eyes was completely swallowed up by shadows. How pale and tired the man looked, almost as if he would fall over soon.

It hurt, Izuku realized. Toshinori was hurt, and Izuku was hurt by seeing him like this. It squeezed the breath out of him, made his heart ache. Part of him wanted stand at his mentor's side in this moment, while the other, angrier part wanted to shout at the people who dared to bring Toshinori in such a situation. All for One, the villains, the reporters demanding answers, the people doubting All Might's good intensions when they were clear as day, all of them.

 _Leave him alone. Please, just, leave him alone…_

He was distracted from his thoughts when the others gathered in the living room to watch the interview. Sitting on couches, chairs or straight on the floor, the students of class 1-A assembled without hesitation.

For a while, nobody said anything, not even the more talkative people like Mina, Tooru or, for that matter, Bakugou. Everyone seemed enraptured by the farce playing on the screen.

It had become common between them all, that they watched the interviews together. For two weeks, All Might could be seen on TV every evening, giving interview after interview. Always the same questions, always the same accusations, raining down on All Might who was standing all alone at the speaker's desk, taking the brute force of it all.

But today, something changed, and Izuku could feel the shift in the atmosphere because of it.

One of the reporters asked a question that had not been asked in the interviews before.

" _All Might, is it true that the attacks on U.A. started right after you started working there as a teacher?"_

The silence that descended over the living room right then was thick and heavy.

On TV, All Might shifted, shoulders stiffening and squaring as if he was readying himself for an attack. _"The beginning of my work as a teacher and the very first attack happened approximately during the same time frame, yes."_

" _So, do you think that you starting to work at U.A. was the cause of those attacks that endangered the students?"_

Izuku could hear a soft gasp somewhere to his left and it sounded suspiciously like Uraraka. He himself slowly balled his hands to fist, knuckles turning white under the pressure.

All Might seemed to shudder, shoulders slumping before he collected himself again, standing straighter. _"I would never assume to know all of the reasons for villainous acts like these."_

"Are they trying to make him take the blame?!" Kirishima hissed, his usual cheerfulness quickly replaced by pure fury.

Nobody answered him, and the redhead fell quiet in order to hear what happened next.

More lights flashed, and more questions leading in to the same direction popped up.

" _All Might, there are a few who seem to think that the students are endangered by your presence at U.A., what do you think about that?"_

" _I'm very sorry to hear that, but I can assure everyone that U.A. is doing everything to keep the students safe and sound. So do I, for that matter."_

" _But, you can't be a hero anymore. How do you intend to protect your students?"_

" _I will do all I can as a teacher and as a supporting presence for them."_

"Go, Sensei," Mina whispered, fists pumping into the air excitedly as if to cheer for her teacher. "Don't let them get to you."

"Yeah, he's doing well," Kaminari pipped up.

"But…," Tsuyu started, worry edged into both her voice and her expression. "He looks so tired."

"No wonder," Todoroki said, voice calm but gaze sharp. "He's been fighting against those hyenas for almost two weeks straight. Two or three interviews like that are already tiring, but this? This is insane."

There was agreeing muttering to be heard in the room, and one or two angry noises at the thought of what a pressure All Might had to withstand.

Then, the bombshell was dropped. What seemed to be an innocent enough question had been the beginning of a storm, and now, the thunderclap followed.

" _Concerning the fact that some seem to think that you are the reason for the attacks on U.A., there were doubts raised if you probably should quit your job as a teacher. What is your opinion on that?"_

For a moment, everything seemed to freeze. The world stopped turning, at least for the children of class 1-A.

Then, there was the explosion.

Izuku hissed as white-hot fury surged through him. Those…!

"Those _assholes!"_ Bakugou hollered, explosions setting off in his palms.

"How _dare_ they?!" Tooru almost screeched, her fists swinging around wildly, almost hitting Ojiro. The boy didn't even notice, his tails swishing left and right in aggravation.

Uraraka jumped up, no longer able to sit still on the couch next to Izuku. "All Might-sensei is the best teacher, and they want him to _quit?!"_

"No!"

"They can't do that!"

"Sensei would never leave us, right?!"

"As if!"

"Never!"

"What a ridiculous idea!"

"We would never want him to!"

Voices drowned each other out as everyone talked and shouted at the same time, angry and worried and furious all at once.

It was Momo who interrupted them, although she looked just as angry, "Guys! Listen, All Might-sensei is talking again!"

Instantly, there was silence as everyone concentrated on the TV yet again.

All Might stood as still as stone, blue eyes hidden in the shadows. Slowly, deliberately, he reached for the microphone, adjusting it so that he could speak directly into it. His voice was loud and clear and steady in the silence that had descended over the hall.

Only those who knew him, like his students, could detect the anger in his words.

" _I would_ never _turn my back on my students like that. I will continue being a teacher at U.A., for as long as they will have me."_

There was an uproar after that, flashlights going off, people talking over each other, more questions being thrown in. Before it could escalate completely, however, a man stepped up from behind All Might – a politician or something, Izuku remembered – and took All Might's place at the desk. _"Enough questions for today! We will answer more tomorrow evening. Now, please, ladies and gentlemen, excuse us!"_

And All Might was led away, accompanied by some politicians, police commissioners and security guards.

As a narrator said that the interview was over for the day, Izuku reached out and turned the TV off, leaving the students in silent shock.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ H ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Toshinori almost _fell_ through the door leading into the hallway behind the speaker's desk. Everything ached, his old scar seemingly reacting to his inner turmoil, and he felt too old and too tired altogether.

Interview after interview, day after day… he didn't know how much longer he would be able to do all of this. Not to mention that he still had students to teach… and he had Izuku promised to train him personally. But how could he, when there was not a minute of his day left to do so?

Eyes dropping heavily due to week-long overexertion, he yawned behind his hand and made his way down the hallway. At some point, the others who had been up there with him – important people whose names Toshinori had long forgotten – had wished him a good evening and left him to it. Most likely they had more interviews to give, or important meetings to attend to.

Well, Toshinori, for one, just wanted to sleep.

Noise and shouting pulled him from his thoughts, and he rounded the next corner very carefully, preparing for whatever trouble lurking behind it.

What he saw, however, surprised him completely.

"Let GO OF ME!"

"Ouch, I _need_ that ear, Hizashi! Control your quirk for a moment!"

"I WILL IF YOU LET ME GO!"

"Could a certain someone please erase his quirk?!"

"No. My eyes are too dry."

"Liar! You just don't feel like stopping him!"

"You don't feel like it, either."

"Yes, well, but I still try to stop him."

"If you really wanted to stop him, you would just make him fall asleep."

"Oh you…!"

Toshinori blinked rapidly, eyes going wide as he tried to understand. "What…?"

"Oh, good evening, Toshinori!" Thirteen of all people greeted him. The hero was wearing his distinct spacesuit and his face was obscured by the helmet, but one got the certain feeling that Thirteen was smiling in amusement.

Next to him, there were Ectoplasm and Blood King, both of them leaning against the wall, arms crossed and expression stony. Both of them nodded at Toshinori as he turned towards them.

Cementoss waved over at him happily as soon as he saw him, but turned back to the spectacle in front of them quickly.

But what surprised Toshinori the most were, quite honestly, Present Mic, Midnight and Aizawa.

Mic was the one shouting and cursing, arms flailing as he tried to stomp off and down the hallway.

Midnight, however, seemed determined to stop him from going anywhere, as she held him in a tight grip, arms looped under his while she tried to convince him to stay.

Aizawa seemed only half-interested in all of this, as he was slumped down next to the wall, knees drawn up to his chest and chin laying on them so that he could nap a little bit. That his friends were causing a turmoil only interested him so far as that he wanted to be left out of it.

"Uh…," Toshinori managed after some gaping, coughing quietly. "What are you all doing here, if I may ask?"

"Oh, you may, of course!" Thirteen answered cheerily, easily speaking loud enough so that the others wouldn't drown him out. "We were a bit worried about you, since you don't seem to get enough rest. So we wanted to check up on you to make sure that you find your way home without any… events."

Ah. Making sure that he found his way home… something told him that this was meant to be some sort of security. The teachers were not just here to make sure he was okay. They wanted to make sure he made it home safely.

After all, since he was almost completely powerless now, there was no way for him to protect himself.

"That's…" not something he had anticipated, quite honestly. He was used to going to such interviews alone, had done so for years, and had done so the last few weeks. But still… Toshinori felt oddly touched by the fact that everyone was here, just for him. "That's very nice of you all, thank you."

"Please, you don't have to thank us," Cementoss waved it off, chuckling quietly. "You're our friend, after all."

There was still shouting and arguing in the background, and Toshinori could no longer ignore it. "And, um… what about…?"

"Oh, this?" It was Blood King who answered, and he looked like he was suffering a bit. "Mic wants to protect your dignity or something."

"Come again?"

"Mic," Aizawa spoke up before Toshinori could ask further. The lazy man had spotted the retired number one and mumbled, "He's here. You can stop shouting now."

Immediately, Mic went silent and stopped resisting Midnight's grip. However, he became quite loud again once he spotted Toshinori. "Ah, there you are, All Might!"

"Um. Hello." Toshinori lifted one hand awkwardly in a greeting. He was still quite overwhelmed by the fact that simply all of them were here.

He almost fell over when Mic stomped over to him and patted him on the back a little bit too hard. "Man, those reporters tore into you like wild animals! Are you alright?"

"A-Ah, yes, thank you for your concern…"

"And those questions!" Mic threw his hands in the air in exasperation, obviously not really hearing what Toshinori answered. "Did they seriously try to make you the scapegoat in this?! What a bunch of utter ass-…"

"Language, Mic," Midnight commented dryly from the background.

The voice-hero caught himself at the last moment with a grunt, jaw working as if he was literally swallowing the words down.

Thirteen leaned over to Toshinori and explained quietly, "He was close to beating the reporters up."

"I would have done it, if Midnight didn't stop me!"

"And that's _exactly_ why I stopped you!" Midnight answered while rolling her eyes at him. "You only get in trouble whenever you go and try to beat someone up."

"That's… really nice of you, Mic," Toshinori tried to soothe the other hero before there could an argument take place. "But, it's not necessary. I would not want to be the reason for you beating someone up."

"It would be my pleasure when it comes to such utter…" Mic caught himself again, muttering something mean under his breathe. Then he sighed, patting Toshinori again, more careful this time. "But hey, at least these interviews are over now. You've got some time for yourself! How about we go for a drink together, all of us? I know you don't drink, but we can get you a water or a tea, I'm sure!"

Toshinori went silent at that, gaze flickering slightly to the side as the instinct to flee kicked in.

He forgot that he was surrounded by pro heroes, who immediately picked up on the change in his behaviour.

"What's wrong?" Mic asked, alarmed.

"Toshinori?" Midnight chimed in.

It was Aizawa who caught up first. Dark eyes narrowed as the scruffy teacher drawled, "Tell me that this was the last interview for a while."

"There is… one tomorrow," Toshinori confessed, gaze flicking from left to right, unable to make eye contact with anyone. "And the day after that…So I don't think I should stay up too long tonight. Thank you for the offer, I really appreciate it, but…"

A collective groan resounded in the hallway, making Toshinori jolt in surprise.

"Toshinori," Mic said, one of the few times he used the other man's real name. He pulled his glasses down enough that he could fixate his opponent with a sharp gaze. "You really need to learn how to take breaks."

"I can't just leave them hanging," Toshinori protested, weakly. "They deserve some answers, some explanations…"

"We all know quite well that the media is not after real answers anymore," Thirteen interrupted him softly, laying one gloved hand onto Toshinori's forearm. "What they want now is just…"

He trailed off, searching for the gazes of his colleagues for help.

"To rip you apart," Aizawa offered dryly.

"Well, that' not exactly what I wanted to say."

"But he is right," Ectoplasm spoke up for the first time.

Toshinori fidgeted uneasily under the combined gazes of his colleagues. They were looking at him as if they expected him to say that he would postpone the interviews. That he would just walk away from the people who wanted answers.

They didn't understand.

This was the only thing he could do in this state. That was the only thing Toshinori could do without All Might.

His buzzing phone saved Toshinori from having to say that out loud. He excused himself with a mumble, digging the device out of his pocket.

 _ **Naomasa:**_ _Saw the interview. You need me to pick you up?_

Relief flooded Toshinori as he read the message, almost turning his knees to jelly. Not only was he too tired to walk or drive alone, he also could escape the situation here.

 _Perfect timing, old friend._

"Excuse me, but… I have to go now," he waved the phone slightly for emphasis, attempting a smile. "My ride will be here any moment."

The teachers exchanged a few quick glances. Toshinori could read exasperation, worry and silent understanding there, and he felt guilty (again). They only wanted to help him, after all.

It was just that he did not know how to accept help.

"Fine," Blood King interrupted his thoughts with a growl, pushing himself away from the wall. "Where will you be picked up?"

"What…?"

"We will accompany you," Midnight interrupted Toshinori's weak question. As he stared at her, she winked in good humour. "We did not come here for nothing."

"No, you don't have to…" Toshinori tried again, only to be also interrupted yet again. This time by Aizawa, who stood up from his place on the floor and shot him a sharp glance. "Don't even try. So, where are we going?"

"Lead the way," Thirteen said, directing Toshinori gently forward.

Toshinori wanted to protest, like he always did when it came to other people helping him. But then he saw the steely determination in the gazes of his colleagues, and the way they seemed ready to quash any objection.

And he gave up, sighed quietly, and said, "Thank you."

"Don't mention it," Mic clamped a hand down onto his skinny shoulder, squeezing gently. "So, while we are making our way towards your ride, tell me – would you really be against itif I would beat some of those reporters up?"

"Mic," Midnight said warningly, "Don't start it again."

"It's a harmless question!"

"It's never harmless when it's you!"

Toshinori chuckled tiredly when his colleagues started arguing again.

It felt oddly familiar and relaxing by now.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ H ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Not one of them had moved or spoken, even after they had already turned the television off. Izuku didn't need to turn around to know that his classmates had the same expressions of shock mixed with anger and worry.

"If All Might-sensei keeps bowing and bending like that, then he will break apart someday," Kaminari says with a forced little laugh.

It was supposed to be a joke to brighten the mood a bit, but nobody laughed or smiled. Not even Kaminari himself was able to uphold his forced cheery façade for more than a few seconds.

Tsuyu was the one to say what they all clearly could see. "I think they already _are_ breaking him."

Nobody wanted to agree to that directly, but after a moment, Satou said, "I found him yesterday, dead asleep, slumped over his desk after school."

"I haven't seen him eat anything the last few days," Sero knew, looking worried. "That's not saying much, I know, he never eats often, but… I think he eats even less than usually."

"He gets more forgetful," pipped Uraraka up. "He even forgot his notes, and left his books and papers in weird places and couldn't find them later."

"And did you see the bags under his eyes?" Kirishima said. "They are pitch-black!"

"Does he even sleep?" Yaoyorozu asked, looking around. "Aside from when he simply falls asleep because of overexertion, I mean?"

"Don't know, but it doesn't look like it."

"So, he's doing his job as a teacher, trains us, gives interviews every day and doesn't even sleep or eat nearly enough?"

"Those interviews are the problem. They stress him out too much."

"Poor All Might-sensei," Tooru whispered, the visible parts of her unusual slumped down, her usually cheerful voice now a thick whisper. "He doesn't deserve that."

Izuku agreed with a silent nod, as did all the others. Seeing their teacher like this, seeing _All Might_ like this, united them in a way. Only now, all of them, even those who normally never agreed with each other, seemed to realize how much they wanted to protect their teacher.

He would do the same for them, after all.

"How can they even _say_ something like that?!" Kirishima demanded to know loudly, startling his classmates with the exclamation. His cheery grin had left his face, making room for a frown. His hands were gesturing wildly while he continued: "After all he did for us, for _everyone,_ the only thing they are interested in is that he doesn't look like they are used to? That he hid that from them?! And they even want him to blame for what the villains did?! _Why?!"_

"Because they are ungrateful _bastards."_ Bakugou hissed, his hands gripping the backrest of the couch too tightly. The material groaned under the added pressure, starting to sizzle as the boy began to lose his temper.

"They are afraid," Tokoyami stated calmly. He was leaning against the wall between living room and entrance hall, hands buried in his pockets and his expression giving nothing of his thoughts away.

Bakugou whirled around to him, snarling. "Oh yeah? So what?! Doesn't give them _any fucking right_ to be so goddamn ungrateful! He saved their asses countless times!"

"I don't like this situation, just like you," Tokoyami explained, something in his eyes flashing as he straightened his posture and met the angry words head on. "But it's a normal reaction of society. Humans tend to search for a scapegoat whenever something goes wrong. Now that their peaceful life threatens to be thrown into chaos by the fact that they lost their number one hero and have no one to protect them from the top villains anymore, they are afraid. The scared people gather together, the fear increases when they realize that they are not alone with their worries. And automatically, they search for a scapegoat. All Might lost his powers? He lied to us? Let's make him responsible for it. That's what they think."

Bakugou actually shut up at that, his furious expression calming somewhat as he contemplated the words. Finally, he snorted and turned back around, arms crossing over his chest. He seemed to accept Tokoyami's words silently.

"That's not fair!" Mina exclaimed, balling her fist and punching one of the pillows next to her. "He is _not_ responsible for all of this!"

"We know that, Mina," Yaoyorozu tried to calm her down.

"But All Might doesn't know that."

Everyone turned to Izuku. The boy was still sitting on the couch with his legs drawn to his chest, his gaze fixed on the dark screen of the television. He was frowning, two fingers pulling at his bottom lip in thought. The words had left him almost absentmindedly, tumbling out while he thought about something.

Uraraka extended one hand, resting it on Izuku's shoulder carefully to get his attention without startling him. "What do you mean by that, Deku?"

Izuku blinked, surfacing from his thoughts. He turned to look at her, before letting his gaze wander over his other classmates. "It's… All Might thinks that he _is_ responsible for all of this."

"Huh?!"

"Why would he even think that?" Mineta questioned, gaze unbelieving.

Izuku fidgeted as everyone's attention turned to him. Normally, he would never talk about something that regarded other people's privacy, but… this was All Might they were talking about. And he clearly needed help right now.

How could they help him without knowing what was going on?

Taking a deep breathe, Izuku continued, "Well, I can't be really sure about it, but… I think All Might-sensei is so used to stand tall and strong and shoulder everyone's problems alone, that he blames himself now. For… not being able to be a hero anymore."

"But… that's plain stupid!" Kirishima stopped himself, faltering a bit. "Well, uh, I would never say that All Might-sensei is stupid, but…"

"But in this case, it sounds like it," Sero finished for him, grinning sheepishly. "No offense."

"He can't do everything alone," Jirou said, quietly.

"Yeah."

"He's only human, after all."

"Yes," Tsuyu said quietly, interrupting the discussion. Her expression was thoughtful and sad, and somehow, everybody listened and didn't dare to interrupt as she spoke. "But when was the last time anybody told the hero All Might that he could take a break?"

The others shuffled their feet, coughed and looked to the ground.

"We didn't, right?" said Jirou quietly.

Yaoyorozu shook her head slowly. "Nobody did."

"Hey, I mean, he's All Might," Sero shrugged helplessly, looking around to see if the others got his meaning. "He was always this… shiny idol who could do everything and anything. I would have never thought that he would _need_ a break, honestly!"

"But now, we can clearly see that he needs a break," Uraraka tossed in. She was kneading her hands in her lap. "Could we not just tell him to do so? To relax and rest for a moment?"

"We could," Iida straightened his glasses, expression stony. "But I don't dare to assume that the rest of the citizens would do the same."

"And as long as somebody needs his help, he won't rest," Todoroki finished quietly.

"Who fucking cares what the citizens think?!" Bakugou snarled, cracking his knuckles in aggravation. "All Might is _our_ teacher. If someone gets to decide that he needs a break, it's us!"

"So possessive," Kaminari joked.

"Oh, shut it."

And suddenly, Izuku said something nobody had anticipated.

"Kacchan is right."

"Huh?!" Collectively, nineteen heads whipped around to the green-haired boy. Bakugou moved so fast that he almost got a whiplash from it, eyes wide and unbelieving.

Izuku meet their gazes without his usual shyness, green eyes blazing with determination. "If society won't give All Might some rest, then we will do it."

There was a pause, before Shouji spoke up. "You have a plan?"

"No… not really," Izuku faltered slightly, but the light in his eyes stayed. "It's just that… society may be important to All Might, but if we ask him to do something…"

Uraraka caught up on his meaning, expression turning hopeful as she finished the sentence, "Then he will do it."

"What, do you want him to get to rest through force?" Kirishima asked, confused.

"No. No! But, if we could convince him that he should take a rest for us, then I think he would do it," Izuku scratched the back of his head in thought. "If we could just give him one evening to relax from all the stress, I'm sure it would help him already.

Everybody contemplated that for a moment. A few of them nodded slightly, while others muttered in agreement.

Then, Mina jumped to her feet and cheered, "He should not only take a break _for_ us, he should take a break _with us!"_

"What do you mean?" Satou wondered.

"We will keep him company! Make sure that he really relaxes and all!" Mina looked at her classmates, grinning and eyes gleaming in delight at her idea. "It will be fun!"

"That doesn't sound so bad," Kaminari mused. "But what could we do to spend time with him?"

"Ah… go out with him?"

"I don't think that's a good idea when he's that tired," Tokoyami interjected. "Besides, he will just be swarmed by reporters as soon as he steps outside."

"Then, something here at the dorms!" Tooru offered, holding up one hand. "Like, a gaming night! Or… or… a movie night!"

"Movie night?" Izuku, lost in thought up until now, perked up, expression brightening rapidly. "That's good! All Might told me once that he likes to watch movies, but he didn't have much time for it due to his work."

"A movie night it is, then!" Mina was on fire due to the idea, pacing up and down while she listed up, "We will watch lots of movies! Oh, and we need snacks, and drinks, and we should be as comfortable as possible…!"

"I think I brought some movies with me when I moved here," Kirishima tossed in, hooked too. "Some actions movies, and a few comedies."

"I have some of my own," Jirou said.

"We could collect every movie we have here at the dorms and then decide which we want to watch!"

"I can prepare some snacks for us," Satou offered, excited grin spreading over his features. "I could need some help, though."

"Count me in," Shouji answered, his tentacles turning into hands.

It was not a well thought-out plan, made up in a rush, but it was the best they could do right now. And everybody was up for it, excited chatter filling the room as they divided the necessary preparations between them and tried to decide what a perfect movie night included.

Izuku was content with observing and musing over what movies they could watch… until suddenly, a hush fell over the room, and everybody seemed to turn towards him.

Tensing, Izuku looked around, blinking rapidly. "What? What is it?"

"Somebody needs to invite All Might-sensei," Kirishima announced, showing sharp teeth in a wide grin.

"Uh. Yes?" Izuku tilted his head in confusion.

Bakugou groaned aloud, slapping a hand to his forehead. "For fuck's sake – would you just text him already, you dense idiot?!"

"Wha-… me?! Why me?!"

Kaminari shrugged. "You have his number."

"He won't say No if it's you," Uraraka added.

"You're the best choice for this," Todoroki finished.

Izuku wanted to protest – All Might would also come if some of the others asked, they also had his phone number, he was certainly _not_ the best choice for this – but Tsuyu reached over, handing him his phone and said evenly, "It's okay, Izuku-chan. Just do it for All Might-sensei."

And the boy heaved a defeated sigh and opened his contact list.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ H ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

"It can't go on like this."

Toshinori mumbled something unintelligible as Naomasa called out from the kitchen. The retired hero was sprawled out on his friend's couch, one arm thrown over his eyes and the other hanging limply from the piece of furniture.

Since they had come here, the only thing he had done had been changing out of his suit and into a comfortable T-Shirt and cargo pants again. After that, he had let himself fall onto the couch and not moved since.

Naomasa had not said anything or tried to get him to help with cooking dinner. The policeman had proven yet again what a good friend he was – not only had he picked up Toshinori right in front of the building the interviews had been held in, no, he also had offered that Toshinori could eat dinner with him and sleep at his place.

Normally, Toshinori would have been uncomfortable with crashing at his friend's place, not wanting to be a burden to anyone. But since the media had found out his address somehow and he had come home a few days ago only to find a bunch of reporters camping before his front door, he had no idea where he could go to.

Well, Nedzu had been quite straightforward about that.

As soon as the principal had found out that Toshinori couldn't really go to his own apartment without running into more paparazzi, he had informed Toshinori that there still was a room at the dorms that wasn't used by anyone yet.

"To be completely honest with you," Nedzu had said, something like a smug smile hidden in his fur, "I expected you to move into the dorms, too. So that room is quite clearly reserved for you."

Toshinori had spat blood out of surprise, had spluttered and stammered before he had calmed down, one hand covering his face as he had processed that.

Finally, he had thanked the principal, but politely declined the offer.

There already was the rumour being spread that his presence at U.A. had prompted the villains to attack. And he couldn't even deny that it was the truth. It _had_ been the main reason.

He could never risk to be constantly on the school grounds when it meant that he would endanger his students with it.

Nedzu had sighed and told him to think carefully about it. _("We want to keep you safe, too, after all."_ )

Recovery Girl had smacked him over the head as soon as she had heard of his decision. (" _Stubborn idiot, will you never learn?!"_ )

Naomasa, on the other hand, had not settled for something like that. No, his old friend missed no opportunity to tell Toshinori what a big mistake he had made with that decision.

Like he did now, for example.

"You really should think about moving to the dorms," Naomasa said as soon as he stepped into the living room. He put a glass of water onto the table next to the couch. "I'm sure it would give you the privacy you need. And the presence of your children would do you some good."

"Not _my_ children," Toshinori muttered, having argued a lot about that subject already. "I'm just their teacher."

"Sure, sure," Naomasa patted the hero's knee slightly. "You almost convinced me there."

Toshinori grunted and swatted weakly at his chuckling friend. "Tease."

"Dense old man," Naomasa countered, getting up and retreating back into the kitchen while he called over his shoulder. "Ask your children what they think about that, why don't you?"

The thought of actually asking them something like that sent a giddy, nervous flutter through Toshinori, and he cursed silently under his breathe, trying to squash the feeling of warmth and hope which followed close behind the fluttering and flared up like a wildfire.

"You're thinking about it, aren't you?" Naomasa sounded entirely too smug.

Toshinori tried to sound bored as he gave back, "When will dinner be ready?"

The laughter he received for that made him scowl in mild annoyance (and a lot of embarrassment.)

He was trying to drift off and get some sleep, the clatter of pans and the sizzle of boiling water his only lullaby, when his phone buzzed in his pant pocket.

Muttering a "Shit" under his breathe, Toshinori blindly reached for the device, fishing it out of the pocket and holding it over his head so that he could read the message without sitting up.

It didn't matter who it was, he told himself as he unlocked the screen, he would not move an inch from this very comfortable couch, he was entirely too…

 _Oh,_ he thought, determined thoughts screeching to a halt as a name popped up on the screen.

 _ **Izuku:**_ _If you have some free time, could you come to the dorms? Only if you're not too tired, and if it's okay with you, though!_

Toshinori could already tell that his determination was wavering as soon as he began reading. Izuku's name popping up on the screen had already scratched at whatever protective wall he had pulled up around himself, and now seeing that the boy was rambling even in his texts…

Toshinori sighed, dragged a tired hand over his face and pushed himself up. Sitting on the edge of the couch, he allowed himself a moment to fight his tiredness, eyelids threatening to fall closed. Then he grit his teeth and pushed himself to his feet.

"Huh?" Naomasa appeared in the doorway to the kitchen, two plates of spaghetti in his hands, one only half full. "Where are you going?"

"I'm sorry, Naomasa," Toshinori answered, feeling slightly guilty for taking his leave so hastily after his friend had done everything to make him feel comfortable. "But it seems as if my student needs my help with something."

He had counted on disappointment or worry, but instead, Naomasa's whole face lit up with a smile. Placing the plates onto the nearest surface, the policeman went to get his coat, calling over his shoulder, "Well, what are you waiting for, then? Let's go!"

"Wait, did you not want to eat dinner now?" Toshinori called back.

"That can wait. I will give you a ride."

"I can walk…"

"You're almost sleepwalking as it is, I won't let you walk all the way there."

"Your dinner will get cold." A last, feeble attempt.

Naomasa laughed. "I just _love_ cold dinner. Now get moving, don't let your student wait."

Toshinori grumbled half-heartedly and followed his overprotective friend.

Really, why did he have such stubborn friends?

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ H ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

It took close to no time at all to reach the dorms by car. Toshinori was pretty sure that Naomasa had broken every traffic law there was just to come here as fast as possible.

When he confronted Naomasa with that thought, though, his old friend had just smiled at him in that teasing way and told him to get out of the car, because they had reached their destination.

"What, you're just going to drop me off and go back?" Toshinori asked while he climbed out of the seat, his long legs more off a hindrance in the cramped space of the car than anything else. "What if you need to pick me up again?"

"I won't have to," Naomasa shot back, still grinning. "I'm sure the kids won't mind if you stay over."

Toshinori withstood the childish urge to grimace and stick out his tongue at the other like they had done when they were children, and just waved goodbye as Naomasa drove off.

Teasing, manipulating friend of his, Toshinori thought fondly yet slightly miffed.

Ah well. Not to be helped.

He rubbed his forehead with one hand, pushing the door to the dorms open with his shoulder.

And was greeted with the distinct sound of an explosion as soon as he stepped over the doorstep.

He froze, instinct kicking in as he strained his ears, trying to hear more. Automatically, he reached for One for All, ready to power up and fight should there be an intruder in the dorms….

Only to remember that he couldn't. There was no One for All for him to activate.

 _Pathetic._

The thought was back in his mind as soon as he realized his mistake and he had to grit his teeth against the pain that came with it.

Before he could think about what to do next, he heard loud voices.

"Whoa, Baku-chan! No reason to blow the poor pillow up!"

"Shut it, Alien Girl! You _threw_ that thing at me! And stop calling me that!"

Instantly, Toshinori relaxed. There were Mina and Bakugou talking over…. a blown up pillow? Anyway, it didn't sound as if there was an intruder or a serious attack whatsoever.

Relief flooded him, and he heaved another sigh, this time not out of stress. As long as his students were squabbling with each other, there was nothing too serious or dangerous going on.

Kicking of his shoes and pushing them to the wall, he hung up his coat at one of the coat hooks next to him. Almost tip-toeing as not to disturb his students, he made his way over to the living room which they all shared.

The students were all assembled in the living room, sitting or lying all over the couches and the armchairs, a few even sprawled out on the floor. There were pillows and blankets and a few stuffed animals, strewn out over and between the pieces of furniture. Obviously the kids had dragged everything soft and comfortable out of their rooms and down here to make themselves as comfortable as possible. The living room table was littered with a colourful array of discs and boxes of DVDs.

And there was a loud discussion going on. Bakugou, sprawled out on the couch on the left, was snarling up at Mina. The girl was standing on one of the armchairs to gain some height, hands on her hips, and reprimanding the explosive boy. "I wouldn't have to throw pillows at you if you just would stop shouting at everyone who makes other suggestions than you do!"

"I only have to do that because the other suggestions are shit!" Bakugou barked back, arms crossed in front of his chest, fingers twitching with barely held back explosions.

"You're just scared that we could actually watch the romance movie," Kirishima said from where he was sitting on the ground in front of the television, trying to get the DVD player to work.

"I'm not going to watch that. If you want to watch that cheesy romance shit, do it over my dead body."

Quite amused about the whole display in front of him, Toshinori cleared his throat to get the attention of his students as he leaned slightly against the door frame for support.

Instantly, everyone turned towards him, and he was greeted with smiles and sparkling eyes.

"Sensei!"

"Good evening!"

"Hello, everyone", Toshinori greeted back, smiling honestly for the first time in what felt like years. "You all seem to be preparing quite the evening."

"Yeah, we want to…" Kirishima interrupted himself as the DVD player came to live with a little beeping sound. "Oh, hey, it's working! Now I only need to find out how to insert the DVD…."

"Wait, let me help," Yaoyorozu made her way over to him. "Don't just push random buttons."

"But it's fun."

"Geez, that guy…"

"Sorry, coming through!" A familiar voice called out from behind Toshinori.

The retired hero's smile widened as he turned around and caught sight of a wobbling pile of pillows and blankets, a few strands of green hair peeking out from behind it. "That's quite the load you've got there my boy."

"Huh?" The pillows shifted, wobbling dangerously to the left as Izuku turned in his spot to see who he was talking to. Instantly, his face lit up in a beaming smile. "Ah, Toshinori-san! I'm glad you could make it!"

"How could I not, when my students call for me?"

"Hello, Sensei!" Uraraka appeared behind Izuku, carrying even more pillows and a few stuffed animals. She shifted her load to the side so that she could reach out with one hand and touch the pillows Izuku was carrying. Instantly, the fluffy décor started floating next to the girl.

"There you go, now you've got your hands free, Deku!" Uraraka announced while leaning over and patting Izuku on the shoulder.

She was trying to be quiet, she really was, but Toshinori could hear her whisper as she leaned towards Izuku. "Told you he would come immediately."

"Shhh," Izuku hissed back, gaze darting slightly over to his mentor while a blush dusted his cheeks.

Toshinori withstood the urge to ask what was going on as Uraraka passed him, floating pillow in tow. Something about the way Izuku kept avoiding his gaze told him that he would get no honest answer.

Instead, he opted to do the most reasonable thing – handling whatever problem his student had come across.

Smiling honestly, although a tad tiredly, Toshinori shifted to straighten himself again and asked, "So, what did you need my help with, my boy?"

For a moment, Izuku seemed almost surprised by the question, brows furrowing slightly, before he understood. "Oh, no! I didn't message you because I needed help with anything. It was… actually, it was supposed to be an invitation."

As Toshinori only tilted his head at him, clearly not getting it, Izuku gestured over his shoulder, towards the living room. "An invitation for this. It's a movie night!"

It took him what seemed like an eternity to progress the words. When he finally did, Toshinori still blinked confused and murmured, "A what?"

"A movie night!" Izuku repeated, laughing at his stunned mentor. "We thought… uh, well…"

The boy faltered, scratching the back of his neck in embarrassment. "Uh, well, we thought you would like to take a break and spend some time with us since you didn't have that much free time lately and you said you liked movies and everyone thought it was a good idea so…"

There was the rambling again, getting quieter and quieter with each word, until Toshinori had to strain his ears to catch it.

Still stunned, Toshinori opened his mouth and closed it again as no words would come. Suddenly, he saw the preparations in a whole new light – this was not just a lazy, comfortable evening for the children.

They had prepared all of this for _him_.

He sucked in a rattling breathe as warm fondness and overwhelming gratefulness flooded him, but Toshinori managed to grin down at his rambling student.

Izuku halted his mumbling, taking in the grin sent his way before he smiled hopefully. "So, uh… would you like to? Watch a movie with us?"

"I would love to," Toshinori answered hoarsely but honestly.

In return, Izuku beamed at him, excitedly waving for him to follow into the living room where the last preparations were made.

Toshinori managed to reach the couch without tripping over blankets or pillows and looked around. "Can I help with something?"

"What? Oh, no!" Izuku was sorting through the movies on the table, glancing over at him at the question. "Nope, no need. Go sit down, we've got this."

It was funny, the way the usually timid boy ordered him around, Toshinori thought with amusement. He half wanted to argue, but before he could do so, there was Mina at his side, gently pushing him backwards onto the couch. "There you go, Sensei! Make yourself at home!"

And off she was, calling for Satou to hurry up with the popcorn.

She didn't even realize how rigid Toshinori had went at the word _home._

He sat where the children had ordered him to, in the middle of the couch, resisting the urge to get up and help somehow, do something. Each time he so much as twitched towards the edge of the couch, one of his students was there, patting him on the shoulder or telling him to relax.

So he had no choice but to ponder what _home_ meant. Was it just something Mina had said without thinking? Or did it have some deeper, truer meaning, at least for the children?

(And what was home for him?)

"Got the thing working!" Kirishima announced loudly and cheerfully, although it was obviously Momo who had done most of the work. "Pass me the movie!"

"Toshinori-san?"

"Hm?" Toshinori startled at the sudden interruption, blinking up at his student.

Izuku smiled at him, handing him a bunch of DVDs. "I can't decide. Is there one you can recommend?"

Without really taking a look, Toshinori randomly pointed at one. There was no need to be picky with the movie when he cared more about the company.

Aoyama turned the lights off because he announced it would be more _glamourous_ to do a movie night with the television as the only light source. Satou and Shouji brought in the popcorn and other snacks they had prepared, getting a few others to help them carry the load. The children searched for a good spot, most of them staying close to Toshinori as Kirishima, Izuku and Momo worked together to get the movie on the TV.

Lights turned off and only the TV screen illuminating the room, Sero started to pass the fresh popcorn around. Trays full of sandwiches were going around, passed from hand to hand, the same happening with the bowls of chips and those full of sweets. Hushed thanks could be heard as everyone found a snack and drink for himself and settled down to watch the movie.

Toshinori leaned back into the couch, stretching his legs carefully – they were so long, he didn't want to accidently kick either Kirishima or Tsuyu, who were both huddled up to his feet, blankets drawn around them tightly. But the children moved aside and made room for him without even looking up.

Feeling warm laziness settle in and quite comfortable like this, Toshinori stretched, burying deeper in the soft couch, stretching his arms along the backrest.

There was some rustling as Izuku ducked under the TV screen as not to block the sight for his friends. On all fours, the boy crawled past his classmates and over to the couch, pulling himself up next to Toshinori.

Izuku beamed over at Toshinori, almost bouncing in place as the first tunes of the movie's soundtrack filled the room. Toshinori chuckled at the sight, resting one hand on the boy's shoulder in order to calm him down a tad.

"Don't forget the snacks!" Kirishima hissed loudly over the soundtrack, handing one bowl over to Uraraka who sat on Toshinori's other side.

The movie started, and the final rustling and whispering quieted down.

The bowl of popcorn found its place on Toshinori's lap. From time to time, the former hero would use his free left hand to scoop some of the buttery pieces up and pop them into his mouth, but not often. He knew his body couldn't handle much of treats like this without a functioning stomach, and he also knew his limits.

Izuku did have no such qualms. The boy steadily emptied the bowl almost by himself, dipping his hand in and helping himself to the popcorn without even looking away from the screen, completely enraptured by the movie. He chewed with cheeks puffed out because he had stuffed too much into his mouth, eyes wide and shining in excitement because of the events of the movie.

It was an adorable sight altogether, but there was even more to see in the living room. And Toshinori realized that, yes, he had no idea what was happening on screen, because he was far more interested in watching his students.

Somewhere along the line, Izuku had leaned over and rested his head on Toshinori's right shoulder, not moving away after that. It was too much temptation, and the teacher had found himself stroking and musing the green mop of hair within a few seconds, unable to help himself. Izuku didn't seem to mind, quite the opposite. The boy had made a content sound in his throat and snuggled even closer.

Uraraka was either too tired to sit upright or searching for a comfortable position, because she had stretched herself out along the good part of the couch next to Toshinori, using his left leg as a pillow. Toshinori couldn't bring himself to point out that his bony limb was probably not the most comfortable place to rest a head on, and had simply moved the popcorn bowl aside a bit to give the girl more room.

Tsuyu was sitting on the ground, leaning back into his right leg. Whenever Toshinori started shifting uncomfortably because his leg started to fall asleep and prickle, the girl moved as if she could sense it and tapped his leg, signalling that he should stretch it until he felt better. As soon as he resumed his former position, Tsuyu was back and snuggled into place again.

Kirishima was lying on the ground, on his stomach, legs kicking into the air slightly, just so that he would hit neither Uraraka nor Toshinori behind him. He was almost as enraptured by the movie as Izuku, a wide, excited grin showing his sharp teeth.

Next to Tsuyu, there was Todoroki sitting on the ground, leaning against the couch in his back. He would reach over from time to time, hand dangling into the box with drinks, and then ice fog would rise from where he used his quirk absentmindedly to cool down the drinks. Whenever someone stretched a lazy hand in his direction, he would pass the desired drink over.

Kouda was sitting on the ground next to Jirou, a stuffed animal in the form of a bunny pressed close to his chest, eyes wide in excitement about what was happening on screen. From time to time, he would excitedly nudge the girl next to him to point at something, and then the both of them would start a whispered discussion.

The rest of the students Toshinori could not really make out in the dark and thanks to the blankets they had wrapped around them, but he knew they were there, and it filled him with a sense of security.

"All Might would do this with ease," stated Bakugou from where he was curled up on the second couch, snarling the words unusually quietly for someone with his loud attitude. His gaze was still fixed to the screen where the hero was fighting some villains. "He can handle something like this in his sleep."

"Shhh." Mina reminded him, swatting in his direction without even looking away from the screen.

Kaminari added: "We all know that, now let us watch the movie."

There was a low grumble, but surprisingly, the hot-tempered boy didn't shout back something vulgar, instead settling for observing the fight attentively.

A smile, heartfelt and warm and almost unseen in the dark of the room, danced on Toshinori's lips. Anxiousness and stress melted away like nothing and he felt himself almost turn into a puddle as a result of it.

All the words the media and reporters had thrown at him today were long forgotten. They couldn't reach him anymore. Not here. Not in this company.

Because he was safe and welcome here.

"Thank you," he said quietly, trying to put all the gratefulness and warmth he felt in those two little words.

For a moment there was no answer, no reaction at all. Nobody turned and looked at him, or answered. Izuku leaned a bit heavier into his side, and Uraraka stretched and laid her hand on his own left one, but that was it.

Probably his words had been lost in the sounds of the on-going movie, he thought. Perhaps nobody had heard him.

Perhaps it was okay like that.

Then, Uraraka squeezed his hand, and Tsuyu and Kirishima scooted closer to him – and simply everyone in the room seemed just to be a tiny little bit closer to him than before.

And Izuku answered without looking up, voice strong and steady but not loud.

"For you, we would do this anytime."

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ H ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

"It makes me so _angry_ that we can't do anything. Like, hell, just let me beat them up, Shouta!"

"You're not going to beat the reporters up, Mic," Midnight sighed. "Even Aizawa said so."

"Why?!"

"Because every time you attempt to do that, you drag me into it too, and we get in trouble. And that's annoying. That's why," Aizawa pushed the door open, noting that it had not been locked. A frown made its way onto his features, half hidden by his scarf. He had explicitly told the students to lock the door in the evening, but they hadn't done it. He would have to berate them yet again because he apparently couldn't even leave them alone for a few hours to go get a drink with his colleagues.

He hushed Mic a bit with a wave of his hand and stepped into the dorms first. For a moment, all three of the teachers stopped to adjust to the darkness, before they started to kick their shoes off and shrug out of their coats.

All the while, Mic didn't give up so easily. "Come on, we _have_ to help him somehow."

"We can't help him with the interviews, though," Midnight reminded him.

Aizawa noted that there was a dim light, flickering gently, was coming from the living room. With a frown, he sneaked over to the doorway, ready for anything that could lurk behind it.

He stopped, surprised, at the sight that present itself to him.

"Something else, then! Do some of his work at school, or…" Mic stopped in his tracks, searching for ideas. "Or at least get him to sleep a bit!"

"Sleep? Why sleep, of all things?"

"Well, because you're quirk is perfect for that, and because the bags beneath Toshinori's eyes are bigger than his eyes itself."

"Well…" Midnight hesitated audibly, before she muttered. "I guess I could do that."

"I don't think he will need you, Midnight," Aizawa stated calmly from where he was still standing in the door frame.

Midnight grimaced at that, taking the words for teasing. "What, my quirk is not good enough for that, is that what you want to say?"

"No. Just saying he's already asleep."

There was a pause, before his colleagues appeared next to Aizawa at an incredible speed, almost slamming into him from behind.

Midnight took one look, and the she and Aizawa both simultaneously turned and slapped each one hand over Mic's mouth.

The radio host let out a startled sound. He had been in the midst of "Awwww"-ing very loudly.

Aizawa sneaked into the living room, all the while gesturing for Midnight to keep silencing Mic. The blond shot him a hurt look but stayed where he was.

Slinking around the corner of the couch, Aizawa leaned down to take a closer look.

Toshinori was sprawled out on the couch, fast asleep. One arm was laying limply over Uraraka who was using her teacher's leg as a pillow while she slept. The other arm Toshinori had thrown around Izuku's shoulders. The boy was snuggled up close to him, just as dead asleep as the others.

Aizawa checked the living room. Yep. Every last one of his students was here and asleep, cuddled and huddled into blankets, pillows, stuffed animals and close together as if they were protecting each other even in their sleep.

Huffing quietly, the teacher moved away from the couch. He turned off the TV which was showing some ending credits of a movie. He picked up a few empty bowls and placed them on the eating table near the kitchen instead. And he pulled out a few spare blankets out of the pile on the ground and dumped them unceremoniously over Bakugou on one couch and Toshinori, Izuku and Uraraka on the other. No need for them all to catch a cold.

Seemingly satisfied with his work, Aizawa let his gaze sweep over the group of twenty children and one teacher, nodding to himself and turning around to leave the room again.

Only to be greeted by a beaming Mic and a mischievous looking Midnight standing in his way.

He would regret that question, Aizawa knew, but… "What is it?"

"You _care,"_ Midnight said, simply, a smile hidden in the corner of her mouth.

Aizawa huffed, not giving any other answer to that, and shot Mic a sharp look. The loud hero clamped his mouth shut immediately, not saying what was on his mind, but the wide grin on his face was an annoyance in itself.

Aizawa heaved a sigh, murmuring something about noisy, annoying colleagues under his breathe, and proceeded to drag his friends out of the living room area and towards the lift.

"Aw, hey!" Mic protested in a whisper (which was normal speaking level for other people). "At least let me take a closer look at that cute bunch!"

"No. You will start cooing at an unearthly volume and wake everyone up."

"You care _so much,_ Shouta."

"Both of you, be silent."

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ H ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

When Toshinori woke up the next morning, it was not sudden and tired (or in pain) like he was used to. It was a slow process, his consciousness slowly surfacing out of the deep state of sleep he had been in. And even when he was awake, he felt pleasantly warm and sleepy. There was no need to rush or jump to his feet to go somewhere in haste, a part of him knew, so he granted himself the luxury to keep his eyes closed and relax a little bit longer.

Slowly, Toshinori was able to register what was happening around him. There were footsteps to be heard, shushed voices whispering in between. The clatter of dishes and pans. The sizzling of something being cooked. Fridge door being opened and closed. Slow, unrushed bustling around him.

The scent of breakfast tickled his nose, until he couldn't deny anymore that he should probably eat a little and drink something. His throat felt almost parched, and his last meal had been far too long ago.

Blinking slowly, Toshinori woke up completely. Instantly, he noticed that he was laying on a couch rather than a bed, and that there was a thin blanket draped over him and tugged in the space around his body.

Memories of yesterday evening came back, and he smiled softly at the thought.

"Good morning," someone whispered from next to him.

Toshinori didn't even startle, his smile growing wider as he pushed himself up so that he was sitting cross-legged on the small space of the couch, blanket draped over his lap. Turning, he greeted back, hoarse from sleep, "Good morning, my boy."

Izuku smiled at him from where he was sitting on the ground, notebook in his lap, pen tapping his leg in thought. He had himself positioned in a way that allowed him to keep an eye on both the events in kitchen as well as on the up until now sleeping Toshinori.

Taking his mentor in with a quick glance, Izuku asked quietly, "How do you feel?"

"Very good," Toshinori answered without hesitation. "And much better than the last few days."

The smile on Izuku's face morphed into a grin, eyes crinkling slightly in happiness. "That's good to hear."

They looked at each other silently for a good while. There were many things they could say to each other, Toshinori knew, and he saw the same knowledge in Izuku's eyes. He himself could say _Thank you_ again, while Izuku could ask him if he was really okay, or what he wanted to do from now on.

But, and that was the best part about this, they didn't have to say any of that.

Because they understood without words, without needing to hear it.

Breathing out deeply, Toshinori thanked destiny silently for giving him such a great student.

Trying to find an easy topic to talk about, he gestured down to Izuku. "What are you doing down there, by the way?"

"Oh!" Izuku startled, grin dropping a bit as he flushed and covered his notebook with one hand. "Um, just waiting until you wake up."

The flush was telling a tale on its own, and Toshinori tilted his head slightly, the corner of his mouth twitching. "Izuku?"

Izuku fidgeted, clearly embarrassed, before he sighed and murmured, "I was writing down the information I gathered yesterday. About the movies."

The twitching got stronger as Toshinori's amusement grew. "You gathered information… about movies which are meant to be just for fun."

In the meantime, even the tips Izuku's ear were red, the blush stretching further. "Well… yes! It's a habit, I can't help it."

"I see," twitching turned into smiling and Toshinori chuckled quietly. "Well, I would be happy to read those notes of yours someday. I'm quite interested in everything that has to do with movies myself."

Izuku hesitated, clearly surprised, before he beamed again. "Sure! You can read my notes whenever you want!"

"I will take you up on that offer, my boy."

"Sensei! You're awake!" Someone cheered all of sudden, startling them both.

"Wait, he's awake?"

"Good morning, Sensei!"

Toshinori had a few seconds to blink, and then most of the students were almost hanging off of him – some of them quite literally, as Mina suddenly landed on his back and hugged him tightly, chin resting on his shoulder as she laughed happily at him. "Good morning!"

"Mina, get off of him," Yaoyorozu chided her, "That's no way to greet someone."

"He doesn't mind, right, Sensei?"

"It's okay," Toshinori assured them, unable to stop himself from smiling fondly as he reached up to pat the girl's head gently.

"How do you feel?" Todoroki asked, expression giving nothing away but his eyes betraying his worry as he lowered himself down onto the ground next to Izuku.

"Much better already," Toshinori answered him honestly. "Thanks to all of you."

"We're so glad to hear that you're better now, All Might-sensei," Uraraka's expression was full of honest relief as she smiled at him, and Toshinori couldn't help but reach out and pat her head too, remembering the way she had not let go of his hand the entire time during the movie. She beamed at him at the contact.

"Uh, Sensei?" That was Tooru pipping up unusually shy, her hands twisting and kneading in mid-air. "There is still something we wanted to ask you…"

"Yes, what is it?"

The invisible girl paused, clearing her throat, nudging Ojiro who was standing next to her in the rips.

The boy frowned at her. "What? What is… ooooh!" Suddenly, he went quiet, exchanging a startled look with the rest of the class.

"Oh, right!" Kirishima said, as if he had forgotten something and now just remembered. But he didn't elaborate right then, instead looking from one classmate to the other. "Uh, how do we say that…?"

"Oh!"

"Yeah, how do we…?"

Shy and nervous glances were exchanged over Toshinori's head, throats cleared and feet shuffled.

Finally, he couldn't stand it anymore. Laughing softly though nervous himself, Toshinori wanted to know, "Is there something I should know? It seems quite important."

Finally, it was Izuku who spoke up, after being nudged, elbowed and stared at by his classmates. The boy was fiddling with his fingers, but he spoke nonetheless, not letting his anxiety stop him. "Uh, it's just… we wanted to ask you if you probably… could think about… consider… living with us here at the dorms?"

The last words were blurted out in a frenzied rush, and that didn't exactly help to _not_ startle Toshinori. He almost coughed up blood in shock and surprise.

He had anticipated Nedzu, Recovery Girl and Naomasa to ask him something like this.

Not his students.

Never his students.

Why, he didn't know himself. It had just never crossed his mind.

 _Why would they want him to live here?_

 _An old, frail, injured man like him?_

 _Why?_

The _No_ was on the tip of his tongue, ready as always. They didn't have to offer that because they wanted to protect him. They didn't need to offer it because they pitied him, thought him too weak to live alone and without protection.

He didn't want to be a burden.

But before he could utter the familiar word, Toshinori caught sight of his students. And the _No_ died in his mouth.

Twenty children were looking at him with a mixture of anticipation, hope and adoration. Not one trace of pity or something alike.

 _They… want me here._

"I… yes. Yes, I… I think I could do that," Toshinori heard himself say. The words left his mouth before he really thought about them, but he didn't regret them.

And their power was unbelievable.

Hope turned to knowing, and instantly, Kirishima yelled _"YES!"_ startling Kouda who squeaked in shock before he laughed himself. Kaminari and Sero high-fived each other, while Uraraka seemed to sag in relief. Tooru clapped her hands together in joy.

Everyone was talking and laughing, and Izuku was beaming at his mentor like a little sun, and Toshinori couldn't bring himself to regret the sudden, rush decision.

 _It's a home. My home. ._

"And you should probably stop with those dumb interviews," Bakugou said all of sudden, interrupting the cheering quite sharply.

Everyone went silent at that, gazes drifting from Toshinori to Bakugou and back.

Toshinori had to turn – Mina still hanging onto him – so that he could face the boy who was frowning at him. "We wouldn't have to go through this if you would take a break once in a while."

"Bakugou-kun!" Iida straightened, indignation clear. "That's no way to talk to your teacher…!"

"No, Iida," Toshinori interrupted him softly, causing the boy to go silent and listen. "It seems that… not only Bakugou, but everyone who told me so, was right all along. I _really_ need a break."

A few of the children looked contemplative at that, while others nodded or even smiled in satisfaction.

"So, no more interviews?" Tooru asked hopefully.

"Well, there will be a few administrative things to handle, and it will take some time to cancel all the remaining interviews…" the students groaned quietly and exchanged worried looks, but Toshinori smiled reassuringly at them. His mind was set. "But no more interviews."

"Fucking _finally!"_ Bakugou murmured.

Kirishima laughed at him. "Awww, so you _do_ care!"

"I do fucking _not!"_

The hasty, explosive response made the whole group laugh, while Bakugou threatened to blow up Kirishima's face. Even Toshinori couldn't stifle a laugh at the sight of the blushing, furious boy trying to intimidate the grinning redhead.

"I'm going to blow you up, stupid Hair for Brain!"

"Come on, buddy, you're ruining the mood here!"

"Bakugou, calm down…"

"There he goes again."

"All of you, be quiet."

Silence descended over the room yet again, and twenty-one pair of eyes shifted towards the door.

Aizawa frowned at them, clearly not yet fully awake, eyes dry and red and hair tussled. He grumbled under his breathe, bit back a yawn and made his way over to the kitchen while he murmured, "It's entirely too early to deal with all of you."

"Aizawa-sensei!" Tooru called after him, hands waving excitedly through the air. "All Might-sensei said he will stay with us at the dorms! Isn't that great?"

Aizawa stopped, already reaching for the coffee machine, and glanced over his shoulder. A dark eyebrow cocked upwards slightly as he asked, "Will he now?"

Toshinori almost covered under the gaze that seemed to drill into his very soul. But there was the warm presence of his students, all of them gathered protectively and a tad possessively around him, and he felt almost invincible like this. Not to mention that he knew full well that the scruffy teacher was actually a little bit worried about him, too.

So he grinned in a way that rivalled All Might and answered cheerfully, "Yes, he will."

A moment passed, before Aizawa turned around again, starting to make his coffee. "First floor, second last door, on the right side. That's your room."

Cheering erupted in the living room, the children giving each other high-fives and Mina and Tooru hugging the breath out of Toshinori.

"All Might will stay here with us!"

"That's so awesome!"

"Guys, calm down a bit!"

"Nope, not gonna happen!"

"We will help you move your things, Sensei!"

"And we will be really quiet so that you can get your rest whenever you want!"

"As if this dorm could be quiet when Bakugou lives here, too."

"Hey! I can hear you, you jerk!"

"Oh, oh, can we do more movie nights? Pleeeease!"

Toshinori laughed loudly as everyone reached for him, trying to make contact with him in some way to express their happiness. Laughter and shouting surrounded him, the noise almost reaching the same level as the halls full of reporters had.

But this was different. This was not uncomfortable or disturbing. This was warm and welcoming.

And so he laughed together with them, opening his arms wide to welcome all the hugs they wanted to give him and wanted to receive in return. And as soon as he got an arm free and spotted Izuku in the hustle and bustle around them, he reached over and ruffled the boy's hair, eliciting a startled noise and a laugh from the surprised Izuku.

Toshinori laughed back at him, feeling as if he could take on the world right now.

In all the chaos, Aizawa finally got a hold of his much needed coffee. Turning around with the cup of warm liquid in hand, he took a closer look at the loud bunch he was "blessed" with.

Sighing, he grumbled into his scarf. "This is going to be way too loud."

Only Midnight, who stepped into kitchen a minute later, smiling at the little party in the living room, spotted the little smile that was tugging at Aizawa's lips. She just grinned at him, meeting his glare head on.

She did, however, tell Mic to go and get the camera as soon as the radio host arrived in the kitchen. One did not see Aizawa smile every day, after all.


End file.
